CM Punk and Real Winners and Losers of WWE Night of Champions 2025 Match Card

Night of Champions 2025 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia promised some of the most important matches of the year for WWE while setting the stage for SummerSlam.

Cody Rhodes defeated Randy Orton to win the King of the Ring, showing he could take the low road to set his next opportunity against John Cena.

Solo Sikoa found new support in a 6'8" giant Hikuleo as well as a returning Tonga Loa to defeat Jacob Fatu and take the United States Championship.

Rhea Ripley overcame the interference of Roxanne Perez to put down Raquel Rodriguez in a Street Fight.

Karrion Kross focused too much on making Sami Zayn admit to a perceived lie than putting away the match, allowing Zayn to come back and beat Kross.

Jade Cargill managed the best technical offense to Asuka and put her down with Jaded to become Queen of the Ring, earning a shot at WWE women's champion Tiffany Stratton at SummerSlam.

CM Punk had John Cena on the ropes before Seth Rollins arrived to destroy The Best in the World. In the chaos of bodies in the mix afterward, Cena took out Punk with an Attitude Adjustment to keep the Undisputed WWE Championship.

This was a wild night that changed many stars' direction. The following are the real winners and losers coming out of Night of Champions.

Winner: Cody Rhodes

Cody Rhodes has two goals at Night of Champions: earn a shot at John Cena and show you will not hesitate to take an advantage to win.

He won the King of the Ring and earned his spot at SummerSlam for the Undisputed WWE Championship.

He also did so with a darker edge, playing heel during stretches of his match with Randy Orton. He viciously attacked the back of The Viper and used an exposed turnbuckle to help him win.

It was not a true heel turn though as Orton was also looking for any edge to make sure he could get another shot at Cena.

What it shown most clearly is that Rhodes will not hesitate when he has a chance to take out The Last Real Champ.

The stage has been set for a WrestleMania rematch that will hopefully outshine that first match in terms of storytelling focus and great action.

Loser: Raquel Rodriguez

Rhea Ripley has always had the number of Raquel Rodriguez, once again defeating her in a big match despite Big Mami Cool receiving help from Roxanne Perez.

There was every opportunity for Rodriguez to finally get one up on Ripley on a major stage, selling that Mami cannot fight The Judgment Day alone.

Instead, she and The Prodigy were embarrassed by Ripley, who truly lost control of a match that became two-on-one down the line.

On the bright side, this was the best singles match Rodriguez has had in years. She and Mami had the crowd excited throughout for multiple wild hardcore spots.

Still, it is hard to get excited about Rodriguez in singles matches, especially on premium live event, when she can't buy a win.

Loser: Karrion Kross

Karrion Kross was never going to defeat Sami Zayn, especially in Riyadh, where he is more popular than most of the roster.

However, this was a chance for The Tollman to show he could keep up with a likely future world champion on a premium live event.

It was one of the best efforts of Kross' recent WWE run, clearly showing chemistry with Zayn, but he fell too easily when it mattered.

A single Helluva Kick after dominating for a long stretch sealed the victory for The Ultimate Underdog.

The ending will likely outshine the fact that Kross worked harder than he has in years to make the most of the spotlight.

Winner: Solo Sikoa

Solo Sikoa has finally won gold on the main roster in WWE. While he briefly capture the North American Championship in NXT, he has found no such success on Raw or SmackDown.

That changed with the new Bloodline coming together to support Sikoa and help him overcome Jacob Fatu.

It took JC Mateo, a returning Tonga Loa and a debuting Hikuleo to pull it off, but the stage is set for Sikoa to finally look like a serious threat in WWE.

Even with how much WWE supports Fatu, it is unlikely he can get the gold back from Sikoa on his own. The Samoan Werewolf will need help.

This story can help put over both men as Fatu finds fresh allies to support him and Sikoa grows his sphere of influence on SmackDown for months to come.

Winner: Jade Cargill

Jade Cargill has finally won a singles title, capturing the Queen of the Ring and earning her first singles championship opportunity.

This is a huge moment for The Storm, who has been rising up the ranks for almost two years since her signing in 2023.

SummerSlam will be the biggest test of her career, pitting her against another rising star in Tiffany Stratton.

If Cargill wins the WWE Women's Championship, it would solidify her as a main event act for the future.

It is more likely that Naomi will get involved with the women's Money in the Bank briefcase, but that would still be a level up moment in her rivalry.

Cargill vs. Naomi battling the WWE Women's Championship possibly all the way to WrestleMania 42 would give The Storm a massive spotlight at the top of the card.

She will just have to prove herself worthy of that spotlight in the coming months.

Loser: CM Punk

CM Punk has always been John Cena's best opponent. The two have chemistry like few others in WWE today.

The Best in the World bet on that chemistry pushing them to another all-time great performance. Instead, it was a messy effort more exciting for who interfered down the stretch.

Punk looked out of breath early, leading to a performance that looked more like two veterans on their last legs fighting to recapture 14-year-old magic.

More devastating was the result. This loss puts The Best in the World right back out of the title picture, and it is hard to imagine him getting in any time soon.

Cena is moving onto Cody Rhodes again, main eventing SummerSlam as he did WrestleMania 41.

Meanwhile, Punk is back to feuding with Seth Rollins with limited support against Rollins' growing army of talent.

It is likely The Best in the World will not be back in the world title picture until after Cena has retired.

Moreover, Punk will have to reconcile the recent few weeks of booking that allowed Cena to mock and belittle him, leaving more questions than answers on his "punk" credibility.